Also: Timor inquiry team grilled by
parliament, 'Wiranto Needs to Accept Some Responsibility'

Indonesian Observer February 12, 2000

Retired general criticizes plan to pardon
Wiranto

JAKARTA (IO) ó An outspoken retired
general has blasted President Abdurrahman Wahidís plan to pardon General
Wiranto if he is found guilty of responsibility for last Septemberís
carnage in East Timor.

The Commission of Inquiry into Human
Rights Abuses (KPP HAM) has said Wiranto knew about the human rights
abuses being conducted by military-backed militia gangs but did nothing to
stop them.

Retired Lieutenant General Hasnan Habib
yesterday said the offer of a pardon to Wiranto will not please the
international community, which has expressed a desire for Indonesia to
prove that it can take legal action against human rights violators.

Habib, who had a successful career in the
military and then in the diplomatic corps, said the pardon contradicts the
international communityís efforts to prevent generals from being above
the law.

"Even though it is presidentís
privilege to issue [a pardon], it was improper for him to say it, because
people will now say ĎThen why bother holding a trialí," he told
the Observer on the sidelines of a seminar here entitled ĎCivilian-Military
Relations: the Military and Democracyí. Habib warned that the
international community will be angry if human rights abusers from the
Indonesian military are allowed to walk free. "If they are pardoned
before the trial process, people who committed such crimes can repeat
their misdeeds because they assume they will pardoned again," he
said.

"The prior goal of the international
community to eliminate impunity will not be achieved. It will also nullify
the upcoming investigation of the alleged suspects." Habib said he
supported parliamentís plan to hold a meeting with the president after
he returns to Jakarta following a tour of countries in the Middle East,
Europe and Asia. He urged them to ask Wahid to explain the pardon for
Wiranto. ----

Indonesian Observer Feb 10, 2000

Timor inquiry team grilled by parliament

JAKARTA (IO) ó The Commission of
Inquiry into Human Rights Abuses (KPP HAM) has been grilled by the House
of Representatives Commission I over its report that stated six senior
generals were responsible for last Septemberís carnage in East Timor.

Members of the government-sanctioned
investigative team were summoned to the House to explain apparent
"discrepancies" in the January 31 report, which named 33
military personnel and civilians deemed responsible for the East Timor
mayhem.

KPP HAM later yesterday delivered a more
detailed report to the Attorney Generalís Office. The full report
contains the names of about 2,000 people involved in the violence that
followed East Timorís August 30 vote to secede from Indonesia.

Team members yesterday refused to
publicly name separatist fighters who are mentioned in the full report as
being partly responsible for some incidents of unrest.

KPP HAM Chairman Albert Hasibuan said
only the Attorney General, Marzuki Darusman, has the right to name
pro-independence supporters implicated in the violence.

Thatís a very different attitude from
earlier this year when the commission courageously named the generals
suspected of masterminding and failing to halt the carnage.

In a bid to mollify its critics, KPP HAM
has said three groups conducted the unrest: pro-Jakarta militias,
pro-independence supporters and the Indonesian Defense Forces (TNI). But
Hasibuan was unwilling to name the accused pro-independence supporters.

"I canít say it at this moment. It
is all written up in our final report, which is expected to be presented
to the attorney general this afternoon. He is the one who then has the
right to name the [pro-independence] suspects," he told the Observer
on the sidelines of the hearing, which was also attended by members of the
National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM).

The final report is to be used by the
Attorney Generalís Office to initiate further investigations of the
suspects.

"It contains at least 2,000 names,
from either the pro-integration groups, pro-independence groups or TNI.
The documents consist of evidence, cassette recordings of interviews with
eye-witnesses and the identities of those witnesses," said Hasibuan.

Komnas HAM members H.S. Dillon and Asmara
Nababan went to the Attorney Generalís Office at 3:00 p.m. to present
the report, which was contained in four large boxes. The evidence was
accepted by Junior Attorney for Crimes, A. Rahman.

Komnas HAM formed KPP HAM following an
instruction from the government of former president B.J. Habibie on
September 13.

House members maintained criticism of KPP
HAM for publicly naming the errant generals allegedly behind the East
Timor terror. During the hearing led by Astrid Susanto, deputy chairman of
Commission I, legislators questioned KPP HAMís smooth access to visit
East Timor.

The commission blasted KPP-HAMís
"discriminative" inquiry for only targeting human rights abuses
that occurred after August 30.

It also said the commission should have
investigated acts of violence committed by the International Force for
East Timor [Interfet].

TIME-Asia Web-only interview February 8,
2000

'Wiranto Needs to Accept Some
Responsibility'

Interview with Albert Hasibuan, head of
Jakarta's inquiry into human-rights abuses in East Timor

From his office in central Jakarta,
Albert Hasibuan, the chairman of the Commission Investigating Human Rights
Violations in East Timor, spoke with TIME reporter Jason Tedjasukmana on
Feb. 2 about the commission's three-month investigation into alleged
atrocities committed in East Timor. The report, released Jan. 31, holds at
least 30 military officers, district chiefs and militia leaders
responsible for "gross violations of human rights." Excerpts
from the interview:

TIME: The military's legal defense team
says the inquiry does not have the evidence or facts to support your
conclusions.

Hasibuan: We have plenty of proof. The
proof is primarily in the form of testimonies and documents and clearly
show links between the military and the militias in the provision of arms,
payments, logistics and leadership. Our proof is to be used as a starting
point for the Attorney General's Office.

TIME: The commission is also being
accused of violating the rights of those implicated in the report by
prematurely publishing their names. Are you prepared for the legal
consequences?

Hasibuan: Of course we are prepared. We
have not broken any laws and the naming of names is clearly legal and in
accordance with Indonesia's civil and criminal codes. We had to be
accountable to the public and they have a right to know who and what was
responsible. People are tired of hearing about "provocateurs"
and "third parties." That said, we have not accused those named
of anything and we assume they are innocent until proven guilty.

TIME: Why did the report ultimately hold
General Wiranto responsible for what happened after East Timor's
referendum?

Hasibuan: We stopped at Wiranto because
he was in charge of security in East Timor at the time. Wiranto needs to
accept some responsibility because he did not take effective steps to stop
the violence. He claimed that "psychological constraints"
prevented him from taking action, but I don't think that is a term that
exists in the military's dictionary.

TIME: Why not go all the way to the top?

Hasibuan: (Former President) Habibie had
been named by a number of those who were disappointed with his decision to
offer the referendum option, but we did not have proof that his decision
resulted in acts of destruction or that he violated any human rights. If
his name comes up in court, however, he could be implicated.

TIME: There is some controversy as to
where the commission's allegations will be heard. Where will trials take
place?

Hasibuan: A Human Rights Court is still
being discussed. If that idea is not accepted for technical reasons--such
as whether the court will have the "retroactive" right to hear
violations that occurred in the past--we could form a Cambodia-style court
where you have a national court with international judges.

TIME: How critical is it that the report
be followed up seriously?

Hasibuan: It is very important that we
see some follow-up action. If we take the wrong step, no one will believe
in us. If we fail this time, faith in our ability to uphold the law will
be lost at home and overseas. These people must be prosecuted. If not, the
whole thing will look like a game.

TIME: Did President Abdurrahman Wahid
assist the commission in any way?

Hasibuan: The President allowed us to
question ministers and certain military officers. He supported us but was
not involved in the investigation.

TIME: Is this report an attack on the
military?

Hasibuan: Not at all. The figure of
Wiranto is seen as representing TNI [the Indonesian Military] but we are
not going after TNI. He is not TNI, only part of it.

TIME: Should the report's conclusions be
viewed as a beginning to reducing the power of the military in Indonesia?

Hasibuan: The military's tremendous power
is being returned to where it belongs--as a professional body that secures
the country against external threats and not as a political player. If
their role is not changed civil society will never take root and the
military's dual function [in politics and security] will never be
curtailed.

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